pfarthing

Hey Marky, that's an encouraging report. I'll demo the Aries when it gets to my dealer. Can you tell me what your playback-system-chain is?

FYI, I wrote to Auralic and they confirmed that USB works with the NAD M51. Very interested in the Aries to retire my SBT and S/PDIF accessories.

Hi, I'm using a 5v linear supply using AMB's Sigma 11 design. I compared powering the SBT using both it and the iUSB and they did a similar job; though I preferred the AMB overall. I would say if your Wellborne is equivalent to the Sigma 11, then the iUSB will not be a massive improvement when used as a pure supply. The other constraint of using the iUSB to power the SBT is you lose one of its USB ports; precluding use of the Gemini cable.

Hi. I'm running almost a full iFi stack: SBT with EDO -> Mercury cable -> iUSB -> Gemini cable -> iLink -> NAD M51. I'd agree with most posters, the iPurifier does a worthwhile job improving clarity and separation in the mids, plus more detail up top. Haven't had much time to test, but it seems to work well both right in front of the iUSB as well as right in front of the iLink. Can anyone else try that out, too?

Hard to generalise. It largely depends on the DAC

I have the Furutech Formula 2 and it's great.

I've tried Primacoustic Recoil Stabilizers and stands. Stands win every time. Try Sound Anchors / Partington.

Can't Metrum retrofit their new USB module? It's meant to be quite good. I'm happy with my iFi iLink + iUSB + Gemini cable combo.

Above your budget but my first thought was the AMR-DP777. I had the Benchmark DAC-2 on trial before but preferred the preamp capabilities of my NAD M51. The DAC-2 I would consider a better solution as a pure source.

Um, almost anything sounds warmer than the DAC1. The DAC2 is not in itself warm sounding, however. It's still on the analytical side.

Thanks, Blake. I didn't even know there was a FS forum here

I just waded my way through this thread. Considering getting a converter to feed my NAD M51 from the Squeezebox Touch. Questions on the a-rt legato 2 -- can someone indicate the price of this and is the battery power standard or an option? Also, what happens when you feed it hi-rez - does it downsample?

You just need to set a budget then audition various units, ideally at home or with amp and speaker setups similar to your own. Listen to various products and buy the thing you like best. If demos are hard in your location then look at outfits that offer money back trials. There's a mega list of DACs here: DAC Price List 2013 | DACinfo It's impossible to listen to everything. Don't sweat that -- just try and find the best thing in your budget that meets your expectations. If you don't find anything in your budget that does it for you, then you might need to consider investments that optimize the USB transport side of things (e.g. a CAPS server) in addition to finding the right DAC itself. I'm going to pick a few based on my prejudices and that you said you didn't like the Sabre based M2Tech DACs- you can research them: Halide DAC HD Metrum Octave MKII NAD M51 Bel Canto DAC 2.5 Red Wine Audio Isabellina Ayre QB9 Metrum Hex AMR DP-777

Hi, my question is really if the iFi USB device principally does the same thing as the SOtM tx-USB? Does one trump the other? Finally, would inserting both in a chain make sense and to what level? Marginal or meaningful? Thoughts?

Hello everyone, I'm a bit late to this thread but super excited to see the new designs. Here's my humble wish-list of options 1. linear power supply 2. kindle remote support 3. s/pdif bnc output Cheers